Fish is a must for Chinese New Year because the word for it sounds like “surpluses”, and we could all use a little extra this year. (The celebrations begin on February 3rd and bring us to the Year of the Rabbit.)
With that in mind, I was looking for a fish recipe that was maybe a little different from the usual. How to Cook and Eat in Chinese, my Chinese cooking bible, has several, including something called Five Willow Fish which I decided to try.
However, my first taste of the sauce for the dish told me it was much stronger than I’d been expecting, even without the “Chinese pickles” it calls for (which I hadn’t been able to find, anyway).
So I experimented a little and came up with my own recipe for a sauce. This makes a deceptively white colored sauce with enough sweet and sour flavor to zap away any excessively fishy taste. I used it on fillet of sole (the recipe makes enough for about four servings), but it would be good on shrimp or other seafood, too.
You’ll need:
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons vinegar
3 tablespoons Chinese cooking wine
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
1/4 cup water
1 green onion, chopped
1 tablespoon instant blending flour
Heat the oil over medium heat till just bubbling. Meanwhile, combine the other ingredients except for the flour. Add them carefully to the oil and whisk. Then add the flour and keep whisking till smooth.
Serve over cooked fish.
Happy Year of the Rabbit.
